The cycle path on Avenida da República, in Gaia, built in 2024 and partially removed in 2025, cost 92.6 thousand euros, according to the Base portal, and did not receive European funds, CCDR-Norte confirmed this Saturday, February 21, to Lusa.
According to an official source’s response from the Northern Regional Coordination and Development Commission (CCDR-N) to Lusa regarding an application by the Chamber of Gaia for the European funds of the North 2030 program, which included the cycle path, “as the application was not approved and the cycle path on Avenida da República was not included in it, no funding was granted, which implies that, to support that cycle path, there was no transfer to the City Council of Gaia”.
At issue is the cycle path on Avenida da República, which was implemented in 2024 by the Chamber of Gaia when Eduardo Vítor Rodrigues (PS) was president, and ordered to be removed in November 2025 by Luís Filipe Menezes, current president of the Chamber, elected by the PSD/CDS-PP/IL coalition.
According to the contract for the construction of the cycle path, available on the Base portal, it cost the municipality 92.6 thousand euros, and ended up being removed almost a year and a half later, giving way to improper parking.
The cycle path is partially removed due to an injunction from MUBi – Associação pela Mobilidade Urbana em Bicicleta, which prevented its total removal on November 10th, after the process began on the 8th, before being approved at a council meeting or Municipal Assembly.
The construction of the cycle path was included in the application for European funds for the North 2030, for an amount of 98.1 thousand euros, but with the decision to remove it, the municipality, already led by Luís Filipe Menezes, asked the Porto Metropolitan Area (AMP) to remove the cycle path from the candidacy, which includes another 10 points that remain.
In the Gaia Chamber’s response to MUBi’s precautionary measure, reported by Lusa on November 25, it can be read that there is no “loss of community funds or harm to the Respondent [Câmara de Gaia] in this regard” and “there is no risk of community funds being lost due to the removal of the cycle path, while the Respondent maintains the availability of all funds allocated to him within the scope of Norte 2030”.
However, according to CCDR-Norte’s response to Lusa today, the application “has not yet been approved, and AMP was requested, by message dated 14/11/2025, for information on the matter” and the “NORTE 2030 Management Authority has not issued any statement on it”.
In its defense, the city hall also justifies that the removal of the cycle path “began before the technical information was formally completed, because this was complex and covered not only the removal of the cycle path but also the signage to be implemented, which took a few days to be implemented and transcribed for information”.
As the decision was later approved at a Chamber meeting and by the City Council, the city council understands that these acts represent “the conversion of the initial decision to remove the cycle path, which retroacts its effects to the date of the initial act”.
MUBi filed the precautionary measure arguing that the removal of the cycle path causes damage, including “the suppression of an infrastructure essential to the sustainable and safe mobility of bicycle users”, “the violation of the principle of democratic participation and transparency in the management of public space” and the “negative effect on the urban environment and road safety”, also referring that Avenida da República is classified as a Complementary Municipal Axis, which “imposes the legal duty to make pedestrian circulation compatible and bicycles”.
The association also claimed that the possible granting of European funds to the cycle path could “constitute an improper use of European public resources”.
The case has not yet reached a conclusion in the Administrative and Fiscal Court (TAF) of Porto.
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